Chamonix, France, It isn’t every day that a friend offers to sell you a Mercedes for next to nothing. In our case, it was a great looking beige 1992 Mercedes diesel–just the car to take us on a road trip through France and Spain. Our problems began well before we embarked on the trip. In France you need a control technique sticker (the equivalent of the car inspection in the US, or MOT in the UK), a Carte Grise (registration), and insurance.…
“Want some Valium for the bus ride?” Although I politely declined, probably I should have realized then just how bad the fifteen hour trip from Luxor to Sharm el-Sheikh would be. But I didn’t.
When I was in India last year I made the mistake of trying to ride “ordinary” buses in an attempt to see India as a local would. This time, remembering the horrors of the Indian bus experience, I had booked a first class bus ticket, and so full of confidence in the “deluxe” ticket I had secured, I turned down the Valium and headed for the bus.…
Trains are a great way to see Europe- no worrying about overweight baggage fees, no hassles trying to find a parking spot- but they aren’t always cheap. A little advanced planning can sometimes help bring down the cost of train tickets.
Each country in Europe has it’s own rail system, but it is possible to buy a Eurail pass that is valid across multiple countries and may save you some money.…
I’ve had a hectic few days since I left Prague.
From Prague I caught an overnight train to Budapest, Hugary. It was my first overnight train in Europe, and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but I was excited nonetheless. It ended up being a really good experience; sleeper trains here include a reasonably comfortable bed and blankets. Usually in second class there are three people in each compartment. However, I was the only person booked in my compartment!…
Apologies for the lack of New Zealand updates. I’ve been spending the past few days touring the West Coast of New Zealand via a Kiwi Experience bus. Besides cheap rental cars and campers, limited public trains and buses, and the occasional hitchhiker, one of the main ways for backpackers to get around are independent hop-on, hop-off buses; the buses have stops they go to, but you are free to do whatever you want at the stops, and to stay at each stop for as long as you want.…
I wasn’t sure what to expect going overland from Thailand to Laos, but after Poipet I knew I should be prepared for just about anything. For the most part (with the exception of actually getting the visa sticker, but I’ll get to that later) the Lao border is a lot simpler, and certainly less sketchy, than the Cambodian border.
There are many ways to get to the Lao border from Bangkok, the simplest being the overnight train.…
The driver pulled over to the side of the road and told us it was as far as he could go— the border crossing can only be done on foot.
“If you hold him [the immigration official] to the price on the sign over his head, though, he’ll probably ask for anything from 100-300 baht as an expedite fee, and if you decline that, he’ll angrily tell you the wait is “long time” and stare off into space or simply shut the window and go back to sleep” –WikiTravel
Given that the border crossing into Cambodia can take several hours unless you are willing to bribe the immigration officials leaving Cambodia was relatively pain-free.…
The rain dashed my hopes of getting to see the sunrise in Hampi, but by mid-day it had dried out enough for me to try some bouldering. It’s possible my plan to go bouldering was one of my least thought through. As soon as I found myself face to face with the boulders it dawned on me that I had no spotter and no crash-pad (which means if I fell, I would be falling directly onto a very hard surface).…
I didn’t expect the bus ride to be fun, but had I known that the bus was supposed to take the Manali to Chandigarh Highway (blocked by landslides) and would be detouring over dark, narrow mountain passes, I’m not sure I would have gotten on.
The bus station in Manali was crowded and chaotic. I arrived early knowing I might have trouble figuring out which bus to get on. The man who sold me the ticket the day before said I should just ask him where to board.…
